An unspecified number of homes were damaged by a moderate quake that struck northwest China’s Xinjiang region on Monday afternoon.

Authorities said no reports of injuries were received after the 5.5 magnitude tremor struck at 1:33 p.m. local time.

The quake, which struck Ruoqiang County in the Mongolian Autonomous Prefecture of Bayingolin, damaged structures in the county's Lop Nur Township, according to Liu Wenchun, secretary of the township committee of the Communist Party of China.

"Although the quake was strongly felt in the township, no casualties have been reported so far," Liu told state-run Xinhua news agency.

Only about 1,000 people live in the area have been affected by the quake.

Xinjiang is one of China's most seismically active region. But the country's most deady quake in recent years occurred in the south of Sichuan province in 2008.

That 7.9 magnitude temblor killed or left missing about 90,000 people. Among the fatalities were thousands of students whose schools collapsed during the violent shaking.